McGulpin Point Light
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| Location | Straits of Mackinac, Michigan |
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| Coordinates | 45°47′13″N 84°46′20″W / 45.78690°N 84.7722°WCoordinates: 45°47′13″N 84°46′20″W / 45.78690°N 84.7722°W |
| Year first constructed | 1869 |
| Year first lit | 1869 |
| Deactivated | 1906 |
| Construction | Cream City brick |
| Tower shape | Octagonal |
| Markings / pattern | natural |
| Height | 38 feet (12 m) |
| Focal height | 102 feet (31 m) |
| Original lens | 3.5 order Fresnel lens |
| Current lens | Replaced |
| ARLHS number | USA-487 |
McGulpin Point Light was constructed as a navigational aid through the Straits of Mackinac. The light began operation in 1869, making it one of the oldest surviving lighthouses in the Straits. The light is located on McGulpin Point, approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) west of Fort Michilimackinac.
The McGulpin Point Light, a true lighthouse with a light tower and attached lighthouse keeper's living quarters, was completed by the United States Lighthouse Board in 1869 at a cost of $20,000. The living quarters were built as a vernacular 1 1⁄2-story brick structure. The lighthouse operated during the Great Lakes navigation seasons from 1869 until 1906.
The design was so successful that the Lighthouse Board chose to use this 1868 design in the construction of Eagle Harbor Light in 1871; White River Light in 1875; and Sand Island Light in 1881. It is a "mirror image of the design" used at Chambers Island Light and Eagle Bluff Light in the "Death's Door" area. The design is sometimes called "Norman Gothic" style
James Davenport was the only lighthouse keeper at this light, and served for 27 years. Correspondence files in the National Archives in Washington show that Davenport made weekly trips through the snow to the lighthouse to report on its condition to the District Inspector in Milwaukee. Perhaps more importantly, these letters also show that he may have played a critical role in the opening of navigation every spring by reporting weekly, and sometimes even more frequently, on ice conditions in the Straits. Because Davenport was the only Straits keeper to submit such frequent reports, it would appear that the Inspector used these reports to gain an understanding as to when navigation would be open throughout the lakes.
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